Welcome

Welcome to the POZ Community Forums, a round-the-clock discussion area for people with HIV/AIDS, their friends/family/caregivers, and
others concerned about HIV/AIDS. Click on the links below to browse our various forums; scroll down for a glance at the most recent posts; or join in the
conversation yourself by registering on the left side of this page.

Privacy Warning: Please realize that these forums are open to all, and are fully searchable via Google and other search engines. If you are HIV positive
and disclose this in our forums, then it is almost the same thing as telling the whole world (or at least the World Wide Web). If this concerns you, then do not use a
username or avatar that are self-identifying in any way. We do not allow the deletion of anything you post in these forums, so think before you post.

The information shared in these forums, by moderators and members, is designed to complement, not replace, the relationship between an individual and his/her own
physician.

All members of these forums are, by default, not considered to be licensed medical providers. If otherwise, users must clearly define themselves as such.

Forums members must behave at all times with respect and honesty. Posting guidelines, including time-out and banning policies, have been established by the moderators
of these forums. Click here for “Am I Infected?” posting guidelines. Click here for posting guidelines pertaining to all other POZ community forums.

We ask all forums members to provide references for health/medical/scientific information they provide, when it is not a personal experience being discussed. Please
provide hyperlinks with full URLs or full citations of published works not available via the Internet. Additionally, all forums members must post information which are
true and correct to their knowledge.

Finished Reading This? You can collapse this or any other box on this page by clicking the
symbol in each box.

Welcome to Am I Infected

Welcome to the "Am I Infected?" POZ forum.

New members -- those who have posted three or fewer messages -- are permitted to post questions and responses, free of charge (make them count!). Ongoing participation in the "Am I Infected?" forum -- posting more than three questions or responses -- requires a paid subscription.

A seven-day subscription is $9.99, a 30-day subscription is $14.99 and a 90-day subscription is $24.99.

Anyone who needs to post more than three messages in the "Am I Infected?" forum -- including past, present and future POZ Forums members -- will need to subscribe, with secure payments made via PayPal.

There will be no charge to continue reading threads in the "Am I Infected?" forum, nor will there be a charge for participating in any of the Main Forums; Meds, Mind, Body & Benefits; and Off Topic Forums. Similarly, all POZ pages, including our "HIV Transmission and Risks" and "Am I Infected? (A Guide to Testing for HIV)" basics, will remain accessible to all.

NOTE: HIV testing questions will still need to be posted in the "Am I Infected?" forum; attempts to post HIV symptoms or testing questions in any other forums will be considered violations of our rules of membership and subject to time-outs and permanent bans.

To learn how to upgrade your Forums account to participate beyond three posts in the "Am I Infected?" Forum, please click here.

Thank you for your understanding and future support of the best online support service for people living with, affected by and at risk for HIV.

Hello, I'm sorry if this post may seem paranoid in nature, but it is a valid concern and of great importance to me. There also seems to be little information out there about improperly discarded syringes and the possible injuries that may result from them.

I work in a retail store, this store routinely performs inventory 4 times a year. The actual store employees are aided by counters that are often shady and unscrupulous. I was responsible for working one such inventory,when the event happened. I was moving some boxes around to reveal the UPC code when my counter [3rd party employee responsible for scanning in items] gasped slightly. I looked down only to find what appeared to be, and my opinion is by no means anywhere near professional on the matter, a small bore insulin delivery type needle. It was about 3 feet away from where I was standing. I quickly went into a panic and notified our "loss prevention" department about it. After freaking out I washed my hands extensively and continued on counting. Later in the evening I noticed a red mark on the upside of my left hand. I could not really make out what it was. There appeared to be something orange at the end of this needle, but I didn't really get a good look at it. This happened about 31 days ago, and has been causing me a great deal of unrest and agony. I have many questions. Among them are:

1. Would I have felt a small bore needle injury?2. Would the wound bleed?3. What are the risks associated with discarded syringes/needlesticks in a non-medical enviroment?4. Should I even be remotely worried?5. Should I proceed in having any sort of testing done? If yes, then when and what type?6. What does a needlestick injury typically look like?7. What do you guys think of the easykit (?) home anti-body test?8. In the worst case, if it did somehow poke me and fall down on my hand, with a superficial type injury are their any risks?

Thank you for your commentary and for being understanding. If there is anybody in particular who is a needlestick injury expert, I would love to hear from them. Thanks again!

Had you have been poked you would have known, you wouldn't be guessing. You were never at risk by looking at a syringe 3 feet away from where you were standing. The needle and syringe is not going to float over and poke you.

That does make me feel loads better. Even if it happened to scrape me in a superficial sense, would there be any reason to worry? I found conflicting information about it. Some "experts" claim that it's a total myth, and some say it's quite possible. Though the CDC says nobody has ever been exposed to it by way of needlestick injury in a non-medical circumstance. Just a bit scary if you ask me, I will never do inventory again, that's for sure. Thanks for your responses, very professional and much better than other forums.

In addition to reading the Transmission Lesson linked to in our Welcome Thread, here's what you need to know to remain hiv negative:

You need to be using condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, every time, no exceptions until such time as you are in a securely monogamous relationship where you have both tested for ALL sexually transmitted infections together. To agree to have unprotected intercourse is to consent to the possibility of being infected with an STI. Sex with a condom lasts only a matter of minutes, but hiv is forever.

Have a look through all three condom and lube links in my signature line so you can use condoms with confidence.

ALTHOUGH YOU DO NOT NEED TO TEST OVER THIS NEEDLE INCIDENT, anyone who is sexually active should be having a full sexual health care check-up, including but not limited to hiv testing, at least once a year and more often if unprotected intercourse occurs.

If you aren't already having regular, routine check-ups, now is the time to start. As long as you make sure condoms are being used for intercourse, you can fully expect your routine hiv tests to return with negative results. Don't forget to always get checked for all the other sexually transmitted infections as well, because they are MUCH easier to transmit than hiv.

Use condoms for anal or vaginal intercourse, correctly and consistently, and you will avoid hiv infection. It really is that simple.

And don't be afraid to do inventory. You're not going to end up hiv positive because of it. No way - unless you have unprotected intercourse with your counter.

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts

Sorry again to bother you guys, but I started feeling uneasy again. So is it impossible to transmit it by way of superficial injury via a discarded syringe? I've been restless in trying to remember if I felt anything poke me, but the memory is becoming more and more vague as I think about it. I'm really scared out of my mind, when it comes to this circumstance. So can I rest assured that even with a small scratch or poke that there is no cause for concern? If anybody has a scientific explanation behind the reason that might help me, I'm somewhat methodical in my thinking. Thanks again, and hopefully the US markets don't tumble anymore than they already have!

As Rod said you were not at risk, a needle stick injury has to be a deep injury, it has to penetrate several layers of skin, to become infected HIV has to get into the blood stream..a small scratch is definitely not a risk...trust us, you are good to go.

Okay, I was waiting for that answer. As I said I don't know if I was poked or not, logic would suggest that it would be fairly painful to be struck by such a thing, but I guess I'm a highly concerned individual, good or bad that's the way I am. I will more than likely test anyway. It's quite annoying that somebody would discard such a needle in a retail store, maybe that's why people aren't shopping? I do appreciate your responses, I feel much better now knowing that it is impossible. I just pride myself in following precautions to the maximum extent and have refrained from involving myself in anything remotely risky. Maybe there should be a discarded needle/syringe section added to the transmission lesson, or an episode of House to address the issue =).

Needless to say I was scared out of my mind, but I do feel much more at peace after receiving your collective responses. It does reinforce the idea that something could go wrong at any event, it may not even occur to you or anybody else. Thanks again!

"...health will finally be seen not as a blessing to be wished for, but as a human right to be fought for." Kofi Annan

Nymphomaniac: a woman as obsessed with sex as an average man. Mignon McLaughlin

HIV is certainly character-building. It's made me see all of the shallow things we cling to, like ego and vanity. Of course, I'd rather have a few more T-cells and a little less character. Randy Shilts